


Doubted

by BeaSox



Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies), Harry Potter - Fandom
Genre: Cheating, Depression, Protective Tina Goldstein, Sad Newt Scamander
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-18
Updated: 2017-12-18
Packaged: 2019-02-16 18:36:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,600
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13059786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BeaSox/pseuds/BeaSox
Summary: Tina suspects that Newt is cheating on her, but her accusion stirs hidden feelings within her husband.





	Doubted

Tina tapped her foot anxiously. 

12 days 45 minutes.

Twelve days until she could see him again. Each day passed at a gut wrenching slow speed, the days blurring together.

Newt had left on a trip to Maine, maintaining his promise to write to her frequently. She wanted to see him. Her heart ached each hour, and longed to wrap her arms tightly around him. 

She heard a feeble knock on the front door, and bolted upright. It couldn't be. She swung the door open, not wasting a moment to allow her brain to register the sight in front of her.

"You idiot! Why the hell are you back so early?" She threw herself at his chest, lacing her arms into a warm embrace.

"I..I wanted to see you," he mumbled in response, returning the hug.

"Good answer," she grinned, pulling back. "I missed you."

"I missed you, too."

It wasn't the full truth, but he supposed that it wasn't quite a lie.

~

Tina noticed that Newt became distant. His lack of eye contact and emotional intimacy worsened. She was pushed to the side and neglected, unsure how to feel.

Newt had a part time job lecturing job about the proper caring procedures for magical creatures, and often came home an hour before Tina did. She recalled his struggle to warm up to the idea of public speaking, and she had to nearly force him into the room. After a few lectures, he improved in many areas and began to enjoy it. 

He would rush home to be sure to arrive before Tina to greet her at the door with a kiss. She would often collapse into his welcoming arms after a exaughting day, drinking in his scent. He smelled of pine needles and home.

~

Tina wrapped her arms around herself, imagining his comforting warmth enveloping her. She was still stuck at work, leaning back lazily in her stiff chair. The clock clicked, and her mind wandered dreamily. She glanced back up, snapping back into her uniform reality. 

It was exactly seven-thirty, and she pulled out her wand.

She knew something was off upon opening the door. No Newt. Her eyes combed her surroundings, but he was nowhere to be found. She assumed him to be down in his case, and had simply lost track of time. She decided that she'd stay put and wait until he realized that he'd missed his routine greeting.

She brewed a tall mug of coffee for herself, reclining on the plush sofa. Her head lolled to the side, her neck protesting with a nagging ache. Her eyes closed involuntarily, sleep washing over her.

A soft thump echoed in her ears, and she came to. A flurry of rust red hair and familiar coat flashed by the door. She e squinted through the haze of exhaustion and confusion.

"Newt?" She whispered, rubbing her eyes. 

"It's me. Sorry," he whispered back, hanging up his coat neatly.

"Hey, it's the middle of the night," she mumbled, praying for the haziness from her nap to wear off so she could interrogate hin properly. "Why are you just now getting home?"

"I..I fell asleep at my desk."

"Oh," she stood, her legs nearly buckling underneath her at the aprupt action. She reached her arm out, touching his. "What about Karina? She didn't wake you?"

Karina was Newt's assistant. She was a few years younger, and quite dashing to say the least. She always wore striking high heels that she teerted expertly on every day of the week. Tina had became jealous of the new beautiful edition to Newt's life, but he had promptly reasured her that they rarely talked unless it was work related. 

She was able to set aside her petty fears and worries to smile at her occasionally when she visited him on her lunch break. She treasured the moments of sweet, innocent love that they shared over the year they had been married. She had though about the the fact that she was the one who was kissing him, she was the one who was able to awake in the middle of the night and could roll over to cuddle him. She has absolutely nothing to worry about when it came to him being unfaithful. At least that's she had thought.

She caught a whiff of a flowery scent; red flags flew up in her mind and she stepped closer. The same strong scent invaded her nose, and she fought the urge to gag. She despised girly rituals such as wearing thick layers of sticky perfume, and always covered her nose as she passed by a group of female co-workers. 

Her heart dropped to her stomach, it twisting itself into knots. No. Newt wouldn’t do this. He wouldn't hurt her like this. He loved her. He had to. 

She debated opening her mouth, and to beg him to tell her that it wasn't true. Beg him to explain himself. Instead her mind went blank, all thoughts of reason being snatched from her. What was she supposed to say?

She swallowed hard, biting her lip. "I'm going to bed." She left him, a thousand emotions riveting through her.

~

Tina was angry, the burning feelings boiling to the surface. She couldn't focus the whole day, her mind being snagged by the sharp thorns of bitterness. She wanted to trust him. To give him a second chance. She wanted to go to Queenie and tell her everything, but she didn't have any concrete proof. She also knew that saying the words would make it true, the harsh reality of her predicament slamming into her like a stone wall: Newt was cheating on her. 

~

Queenie stroked her hand down Tina's arm, her older sister's frame shaking against her. "H-How could her do this to m-me? I thought he loved me..he t-told me so..is everything that he told me..l-lies?" Tina wept violently, pearly tears streaming down her rosy cheeks.

"Shhhh, honey. Yoy should confront him, he probably has an explanation. You shouldn't jump to conclusions," Queenie hummed softly.

"H-He smelled like a women, and has been distant since he came back to the city. He claimed it was because he m-missed me..but what if he just wanted to see his mistress again? I shouldn't have trusted him with his stupid, young a-assistant..." Tina sat up, wiping her face on her sleeve. "He's not himself at all, he comes home late and is always s-so tired."

She sighed, collecting herself at the embarrassment of being vulnerable in front of another person. "Then again must be hard living a double life."

"Talk to him, Teen. This isn't him. You really got lucky with him, he treats you well and he loves you more than anything in the world."

"Whatever. I'll speak with him tonight. That is, if he even bothers to show up."

~

"You're late, again," Tina hissed from her perch at the wooden dining table. 

"Y-Yes. Sorry," he avoided her eyes, his hope that she would see through him clear as day. 

"What's your excuse this time?"

"I..I had to take care of a few things."

"Is that code for sleeping with your assistant?"

"Wh-Wha---"

"Exactly, you can't even explain yourself! I wanted to trust you so much, dammit! I wanted to give you the benefit of the doubt, but you're blowing it right now! I can't believe that I married you, let alone trusted you!"

"What are you t-talking about? I'm not..."

"Save it, Newt. I don't want to hear it!"

"Ti---"

Fury seared through her body, and she didn't feel in control of her own limbs. She slapped him, glistening tears creating a glassy effect over her eyes.

He reeled backwards, pain stabbing through his face. He brought his hand up to his cheek, touching the red mark forming. 

Guilt bit at Tina, but she did her best to ignore it, simultaneously fighting the urge to let out a strangled sob. 

"I would never do that to you."

"Sure. How am I supposed to possibly believe you? These past few weeks all you have done is incriminate yourself! Just go and be with her, if you want her so damn badly. Just, leave."

"Tina.." His expression melted from an icy blankness to appearing on the verge of tears. "I just...I need you. I need you so much r-right now."

"Maybe you should have thought about that before you went behind my back---"

"I never had an affair with Karina or anyone else, I would never do anything like that. I j-just..."

"Just what?"

"You make it so hard to talk to you about anything, you always are caught up with your job. You say a few words to me, then ignore my existence until my presence isn't a burden to you any longer. You go back to your beloved job, the one that you have made apparent that you love more than me!"

She glared at him, baffled by the accusation. "How could you say that? Of course I love you!"

"You don't show it, Tina. You push me away and you always treat me as if I'm not allowed to have feelings. I told you before I left for Maine that I was feeling down, and that I was hoping that traveling would make me feel better. I wanted you to prove that you cared, but you only forgot about it. Forgot about me. You never even wrote me back."

"I was busy, okay? I read your letters, and I took into account about how you were upset about something. I know that you don't like confrontation, and I decided that leaving you alone would be for the best," She ran her hand through her dark, sleek hair. Why was she defending herself? He was the one who possibly was cheating on her. "None of this even pertains to why you've been behaving odd recently. Don't try to change the subject."

"I-I'm not....nevermind. I'll go," he whispered in defeat, the energy clearly drained out of him.

Tina took in the dark bags underneath his eyes, the pale skin showing signs of sleep deprivation. Had he been sleeping at all? She never she supposed she payed any attention, not in the careful way that he cared for her. He was always there for her, a sturdy arm to cry on when her and Queenie were quarreling, a loving husband. Not once had he ever shown any weak emotion to her, and she couldn't imagine him sobbing into her shoulder.

She wondered how many supressed emotion there was inside of him, how many times he had to bite his tongue the long while they had been together. His confession about his negative feelings was sudden, and she didn't know what to make of it. She decided to try to keep her mind off of her fears that he would need her for emotional support. She wasn't particularly well in the feelings department, and felt awkward when it came to comforting the ones she loved. 

"You don't need to go..."

"It's fine, Tina. I was destined to be alone anyways."

~

Newt didn't mean to tell Tina that he his true reason for leaving the city was to cheer himself up, but it just slipped out. It certainly wasn't unusual for him to feel down, but he didn't see a point in telling anyone. He loved Tina. He didn't want her to get annoyed by him, he was already already terrified at the brief thought of her not wanting him anymore. He'd much rather keep his feelings buried deep than cause any unnecessary drama for them.

His therapist, Ms. Clarity had surprised him by embracing him after their sesssion. She sported a strong perfume, but he was glad for any form of human contact all the same. He desperately wanted Tina to comfort him, to reassure him on his insecurities and dark thoughts. He didn't know how to ask.

The heavy metal door to the roof opened, a metallic clank slicing through the crisp night air.

"Jacob said that you'd be up here," Tina said, appearing beside him. She rested her arms on the ledge, mimmicking his posture.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have left, it was immature of me."

"It's fine. I told you to."

Silence clung to the air, the only noise being the far off honking of horns and muffled chatter. 

"Can I ask you something?"

He nodded, the air unforgiving and cold against his exposed skin.

"Am I just being paranoid?" She asked, the question lingering in the night.

"No. I suppose that my behavior was suspicious."

"What is going on with you? I'm here. I'll listen to you, no more secrets, okay?"

"I'm off my medication, Tina. I keep falling asleep at my desk and I feel awful."

"Med--? You take me-medication."

"Yes, antidepressants."

"I didn't know that you took those. Newt, I should know this stuff. Married couples shouldn't keep secrets this big, honey."

"It's not a b-big deal. I know that I should have told you. I got prescribed them shortly after we met.."

"Why? You were depressed when we met? You didn't seem like it."

"I guess I was just grateful for a happy distraction from my miserable life. I hated my life and everything that happened to me growing up lead me to hate myself as well. The therapist that I saw every now and then mentioned that I wasn't getting better. She said that isolating myself from everyone else would lead to me being a danger to myself if I continued to have 'self destructive tendencies' as she called them."

He closed his eyes, seeming peaceful at finally getting things off his chest. "Eventually she said that she worried that they would turn into suicidal tendencies if I didn't seek better help. Around when we met I began getting these thoughts. I thought about how long it would take for someone to find my body after I ended my life."

She placed her hand over his protectively, urging him to go on with widened eyes. "You could have told me.."

"I didn't know you at the time. It didn't seem at all fitting to dump my issues on a stranger," he responded, his tangent seeming stupid and dull out loud. "I'm being childish. I should just be happy and not dwell on the small things."

"That's not what I was going to say. I want you to feel that you can talk to me. Anytime. About anything. You can trust me," her voice was steady and gentle. "I love you. I'll always be here for you."

He nodded, willing his mouth to form any kind of sound with no avail.

"You shouldn't stop taking medication abruptly, that's not good for your body," she lectured, squeezing his hand.

"I know. I dropped all of them down the sink by accident in my hotel room, but they won't let me get another bottle. I already refilled my prescription this month, and I'm not due until next month for another refill."

"There's nothing you can do?"

He nodded slowly, sighing a billowing white cloud of smoke into the freezing air.

"Well, we can try to convince them or something. Hey, look at me." She dipped his chin up to force his eyes to meet hers. "You are not alone anymore. I'll do everything I can to make sure that you don't have to suffer silently."

He let her pull him into her, allowing himself to break in front of another person for the first time in his life.


End file.
